Cocos Neumünster (2015)

The catering zone in Neumünster’s shopping centre, Holsten Galerie, is designed around a food court. Comfortable seating for customers who purchase food over the counter from the surrounding catering units is located in the middle of the court.

Since 'Cocos' would not have its own restaurant space here, the most important element of the design would have to be its public-facing counter. As the company does elsewhere, they would be selling Asian dishes, to be prepared on the counter or in the room behind it. Our design was also going to need to accommodate a public-facing cooling tray, from which customers in a hurry would be able to select pre-packaged sushi portions.

In response to this variety of functional requirements, we developed an equally diverse design language. Thanks to the horizontal layering integral to our design, we could accommodate mid-height, clearly demarcated, or even indistinct areas of use, as well as simple, flat, table-top like areas. The sushi cooling tray, for instance, could be fitted into a space created by the naturally occurring, organic shape of the counter. The inspiration for the design of the counter as a whole came from caves and rock formations washed by waves over millions of years in a constant flow of water.